"So it has been confirmed as death due to dengue haemorrhage and not by drowning as thought," Insp Sokomuri said.

But the relatives of the deceased, Osea Gata, are still coming to terms with the death because he did not appear to show any signs of illness prior to the incident.

"Osea was a very active and healthy young man, so we are still trying to come to terms with the report that he did not die of drowning but because he had dengue," his uncle Vitili Vitu said yesterday.

"It's a very sad day here for the family."

Dr Gounder said yesterday, dengue haemorrhage was the fourth stage of dengue fever where instant death could occur.

"I was told that the victim did not show any sign of illness prior to this, but my findings ruled out drowning as the cause of death but by dengue haemorrhage," Dr Gounder said.

"People have different levels of resistance and can even hide the symptoms, but when it reaches this stage it can be so severe that death is instant."

Last week, the Health Ministry confirmed two deaths as a result of dengue fever while the third death was confirmed by police yesterday. The ministry recorded 1422 lab-confirmed dengue cases in the country.